River otter nursed back to health and returned to Richardson Bay

Updated 5:23 pm, Thursday, November 17, 2016

Patient 1665 is an unusual convalescent, but after weeks of treatment, she finally got to go home Thursday.

The patient, a river otter, was brought to placid Richardson Bay on the Belvedere shore at about 11:30 a.m. and released from her cage. The otter quickly scooted a few feet down a bank and dived into the water, swimming a short distance before disappearing.

“The only animals that ever stop to look back are the coyotes and bobcats,” said Alison Hermance, a spokeswoman for WildCare, as she watched the otter swim away.

The otter’s homecoming came almost a month after Belvedere police found her one evening with abrasions to her face and suffering from head trauma.

Photo: Wildcare / / Wildcare /

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A river otter will return to her home off the Bay shores of Belvedere Thursday morning after Belvedere police found her in late October with abrasions and suffering from head trauma.

A river otter will return to her home off the Bay shores of Belvedere Thursday morning after Belvedere police found her in late October with abrasions and suffering from head trauma.

Photo: Wildcare / / Wildcare /

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Peaceful spot on the shore in Belvedere where a river otter nursed back to health after apparently being hit by a car was released Thursday morning.

Peaceful spot on the shore in Belvedere where a river otter nursed back to health after apparently being hit by a car was released Thursday morning.

Photo: Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle / Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle

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A river otter nursed back to health after being hit by a car in late October arrives at the shore in Belvedere in a covered carry kennel to be released back into the bay.

A river otter nursed back to health after being hit by a car in late October arrives at the shore in Belvedere in a covered carry kennel to be released back into the bay.

Photo: Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle / Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle

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A river otter nursed back to health after being hit by a car in late October was released back to the bay on the shore in Belvedere.

A river otter nursed back to health after being hit by a car in late October was released back to the bay on the shore in Belvedere.

Photo: Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle / Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle

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A river otter nursed back to health after being hit by a car in late October was released back to the bay on the shore in Belvedere Thursday morning.

A river otter nursed back to health after being hit by a car in late October was released back to the bay on the shore in Belvedere Thursday morning.

Photo: Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle / Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle

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A river otter nursed back to health after being hit by a car in late October was released back to the bay on the shore in Belvedere.

A river otter nursed back to health after being hit by a car in late October was released back to the bay on the shore in Belvedere.

Photo: Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle / Sarah Ravani / The Chronicle

River otter nursed back to health and returned to Richardson Bay

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Otters are “shy, they’re fierce and they’re definitely challenging to treat,” said Hermance.

Belvedere police discovered the river otter Oct. 20 beside a road and immediately called the Marin Humane Society when the animal wouldn’t get back into the water.

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The otter had abrasions and sore spots on her head and face, and a broken toe.

Veterinarians assumed the otter had either been struck by a car when she stuck her head out from the side of the road, or had a menacing encounter with another animal, said Brittany Morse, a member of the medical team at WildCare.

The young female probably left her mother’s side, attempting to forge a path of independence, Hermance said.

After three weeks of treatment at WildCare and the Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue, Patient 1665 appeared eager to get back home to the bay, showing no lingering effects from her injuries.

In the past, river otters were uncommon in the Bay Area, but since 2012, there have been 1,900 sightings in the Bay Area, said Megan Isadore, the founder and executive director of the River Otter Ecology Project in Marin.

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